Human Toys/Dry Retch – Outpost, Liverpool – 07.03.24

Human Toys/Dry Retch – Outpost, Liverpool – 07.03.24

Got in a bit too late tonight to catch Raw Bones open up, for which I can only apologise. From the bit I caught and what heard from the other punters I certainly need to pull my socks up next time they’re on. 

What I would like to say before continuing my review, in relation to a different night’s event. What an amazing venue Outpost is. Tonight’s event is a prime example of it’s smooth running and how it’s a beacon for DIY touring bands. This place was my last gig before we went into Lockdown and my first one back when we came out of (one of the many) Lockdown(s). Fiercely independent and very welcoming. It’s a challenging time for all places of hospitality right across the board. No one needs spurious and childish retorts online that can hamper a business. Please treat staff and facilities with respect. Keep our venues busy. Keep our venues open. Thanks.

Birkenhead stalwarts the Dry Retch, take us through their usual tour de force, throwing heavy artillery our way and lobbing the occasional grenade of quips and wordplay. Treating us to favourites such as ‘12,000 miles from new’ and the truely pulsating ‘hate the young’. We’re also treated to a new track, that is absolute seismic garage terror. Definitely one to keep an eye out for.

Human Toys hit the stage and introduce us to their brand of theremin infused Parisian punk rock fury. Excellent guitar chops married with energetic and chaotic mic work. This duo engage with the crowd at all opportunities and show nothing but enthusiasm throughout. In a couple of years these pair could have the potential to be a cult live act that everyone will seek out, such as Bob Log III, Messer Chups and the Courettes. But they’re not quite there yet, at times, coupled with unnecessary feedback it can be a little all over the place. Perhaps I caught these guys on a bad night, but it definitely hasn’t put me off in the future. Judging by their new 45 that has just dropped, ‘go go alco’/’generation shit’, the material is only getting better. 

https://thedryretch.bandcamp.com/

https://humantoys.bandcamp.com/

Author: Dan Kasm

‘Oh Shit!’ The Libertines – release another new single

‘Oh Shit!’ The Libertines – release another new single

‘Oh Shit’ is the latest single from their forthcoming new album due in April listen here: TheLibertines.lnk.to/OhShit

pic Ed Cooke

Oh shit ,oh shit

Lets make some money

Just enough to get us by

The Libertines release a fabulous new single (quite possibly the most Libertines single ever!) on Wednesday 6th March. Entitled Oh Shit it is an earworm anthem for these economically challenging times and is taken from their eagerly awaited new album All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade which hits the streets on April 5th.

Written by Carl Barat and Peter Doherty, Oh Shit is the fourthsingle to be lifted from All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade, following the release of Run, Run, Run VIDEO, Night Of The Hunter VIDEO and Shiver VIDEO  You can preorder the new album here: TheLibertines.lnk.to/AQOTEEPR 

The Libertines’ UK/IRELAND tour all but sold out within hours of being announced – faster than any previous tours in their history – which nails the lie that no-one wants to see bands live anymore. To cater for the unprecedented demand, a third and final night has been added at Manchester’s Albert Hall on Saturday 9th November.

The full dates for the All Quiet On The Esplanade Tour are:

SEPTEMBER 

23rd MON Dublin  3Olympia Theatre SOLD OUT

24th TUE Belfast The Telegraph Building SOLD OUT

OCTOBER

3rd THU Birmingham O2 Academy SOLD OUT

4th FRI Norwich UEA SOLD OUT

5th SAT Cambridge  The Corn Exchange SOLD OUT

7th MON Cardiff Great Hall FEW TICKETS

8th TUE Bristol O2 Academy SOLD OUT

17th THU Glasgow Barrowland Ballroom SOLD OUT

18th FRI Glasgow  Barrowland Ballroom SOLD OUT

19th Sat Liverpool Mountford Hall SOLD OUT

21st Mon Nottingham Rock City SOLD OUT

22nd  TUE Leeds O2 Academy SOLD OUT

30th WED London Roundhouse FEW TICKETS

31st THU London Roundhouse SOLD OUT

NOVEMBER

1st FRI London Roundhouse FEW TICKETS

4th MON Sheffield The Octagon FEW TICKETS

5th TUE Newcastle NX SOLD OUT

7th THU Manchester Albert Hall SOLD OUT

8th FRI Manchester Albert Hall SOLD OUT

9th SAT Manchester Albert Hall TICKETS ON SALE 9AM 8TH MARCH

The Libertines will be playing the following in/out-store shows on the week of release of the new album with a special Q&A happening at Rough Trade East.

APRIL IN/OUT-STORES:

5th  FRI  Coventry HMV Empire

6th  SAT Birmingham Acoustic

Manchester Academy w/ Crash Records

8th MON Rough Trade East Q&A w/ Rough Trade

9th TUE Pryzm Kingston w/ Banquet Records

As previously announced The Libertines will headline ‘On The Beach Festival’ in Brighton on Sunday, July 28th.

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Christmas/Deathtraps/System Reset/The Setbacks – The Cab, Newport – 29th February 2024

Christmas/Deathtraps/System Reset/The Setbacks – The Cab, Newport – 29<sup>th</sup> February 2024

It’s almost a year since I first set foot in The Cab, and it’s wonderful to see the team behind the place going from strength to strength and keeping the scene alive, it’s also a staggering 10 years since Christmas frontman Max Motherfucker first brought his band of deathpunk renegades over from Germany to play south Wales, as he is quick to remind us during his band’s headline set here tonight.

Where the hell does the time go eh? That’s why it’s perhaps always best to “live in the moment” as you’ll never know what’s around the corner. You might just be putting on your biggest show ever when Sick Of It All play for you this spring, or you might be just about to celebrate 15 years together as a band. Yup it’s all about the here and now folks and tonight is like a mini-Slugfest, but on tour, as four bands who have all played at south Wales’s finest DIY free festival share a stage at Newport’s finest DIY punk rock venue. Four bands, £6 entrance fee…bosh! How’s that for living in the now?

Kicking things off are The Setbacks from Bath and the five-piece fair rattle through their set finishing off with a riotous rendition of ‘Lulu’s Leaving’.  The healthy-sized crowd loving every minute of tonight’s starter for ten and I must admit it had been way too long since I last saw them live. Tidy!

That can’t be said of System Reset, however, as this popular combo seems to pop up wherever there’s a punk rock show occurring, and it shows in just how slick an outfit they have become. Tracks like opener ‘March’, ‘Anxiety’ and (still my favourite track by the band) ‘Fail Safe’ positively bounce along, containing almost as much spring in their step as frontman Stan, who just doesn’t stop. ‘Big Business’ is always how a Reset show ends and it’s a middle finger to the corporate world we all live in. Talking of which, rumour has it that Sutton and Shov from the Reset have got the original Trigger McPoopshute line up back together for one last hurrah! Perhaps a co-headline tour with Terry & The Idiots awaits, or maybe it’ll be Rebellion 2025?

A band that I feel have long since warranted a slot at Rebellion are Newport’s Deathtraps. Now a full year into being a quartet the band are currently recording album number five, and if tonight is anything to go by it’s going to be their most ferocious slab of wax yet. ‘Red Eyes And Black Kisses’, Too Much is Never Enough’ and ‘Cool Kids’ are all present and correct from the old trio days but it’s the new cuts like (please note I may have these titles slightly incorrect) ‘You’re The One’ and ‘Right Thing’ that positively hammer home why Deathtraps in this new expanded format truly are a mighty force to be reckoned with. 

It’s going to take a special kind of band to top the sonic fury of Deathtraps and thankfully Christmas (playing on a leap year day too, just to totally mess with my OCD mind) are just that band. Frontman Max has his shirt off and is in our faces before ‘Wolfpack’ has even had a chance to howl and throughout the band’s 20 odd song set he’s constantly in and out of the crowd cajoling those brave enough to stand in front of him to sing along with the band’s incendiary back catalogue. He’s such a blur of energy that even the Cab’s normally Tonka truck strong vocal PA (this is a set up that withstood Clobber and Conservative Military Image on the same bill remember) gives up the ghost just ahead of ‘Appetite for Selfdestruction’ and with a shorter microphone cable attached and Max finally partially tethered the likes of ‘Hot Nights in Saint Vandal’ ‘Nothing But  A Handjob’ and the immense ‘Candy Me’ all sound like firecrackers in the head. There’s just enough time for a run through of Turbonegro’s ‘Ride With Us’ before ‘Go Hard or Go Home’ sends me out into the cold night air loaded up on band merch, recognising the fact that any group that has driven for 15 hours and passed through 6 countries to get to play for you fully deserves our support.

“Oh I wish it could be Christmas every day…..”

Author: Johnny Hayward

One The Juggler- ‘Memoir Days’ (Real Vision Records)

One The Juggler- ‘Memoir Days’ (Real Vision Records)

Life’s full of surprises. My teenage self wouldn’t have believed that in 2024 I would be reviewing a new album by One The Juggler. Granted, 2020’s ‘The Ocean Man’ was a welcome return after the ‘Destination Planet Blue’ compilation. There were new, joyous tunes, but while ‘Memoir Days’ might occasionally be reminiscing of the pomp and ambition of youth, it holds together better as an album.

‘We Love It All’ is really an intro, full of optimism and positivity, leading into ‘Talking To Ourselves’. This song, along with lead track ‘Jennifer Heaven’, are the natural successors to ‘Nearly A Sin’; the mix of acoustic guitar and Ronno styled electric, with a touch of Bolan melodies. Yes, the Bowie influences are still here, but it’s the quality of songwriting that was always the band’s strength. Their debut was full of songs they’d already honed live, like many bands. ‘Memoir Days’ sounds like the true follow up album, with the title track urging “be sure to write it all down now, while it’s still fresh in your mind”.

Rokko/Sham’s vocals are as distinctive as ever, and a joy to hear. And with Jerry, he has crafted a fine set of songs here, worthy of the name One The Juggler. I regularly bore people with my enthusiasm for ‘Nearly A Sin’, but everyone I’ve recommended it to has loved it.

‘The Revolution’s On Your Phone’ is like a long-lost Mott classic, majestic stuff indeed.

‘Sylvia Strange’ is as catchy as the title deserves to be, a swoonsome slice of pop,  while ‘When We Get Home’ ups the pomp, an instant hook, like Suede’s dubious uncles who still know a trick or two. This one’s on replay.

‘Andy’s Bar’ has a similar melancholy to ‘(O No) You’re Not The Same’, lyrically I think Brel would approve, and the acoustic touches are beautiful. ‘Into The Blue Eternity’ is a bittersweet end. “Between the dishes and the laundry, her mind is planning an escape…”

Influences aside, this sounds like a One The Juggler album, and it’s all the better for it. Welcome to their world. It will improve yours.

Author: Martin Chamarette

The Yalla Yallas – ‘A World At The End Of The World’ (Self-Released)

The Yalla Yallas – ‘A World At The End Of The World’ (Self-Released)

Leeds noisenicks The Yalla Yallas follow up their 2021 album ‘What It Means To Be Human’ with a thought-provoking 6th studio album entitled ‘A World At The End Of The World’. Self-produced and recorded at Loom studios in West Yorkshire, we join singer/songwriter and main protagonist Rob Galloway on a retrospective trip through the cosmos where he questions our whole existence, searches to find out what is real, declares undying love to at least one girl, and ends up hanging out with Elvis, or something, before the end of the world.

With an album title that gives a ray of hope in spite the impending doom, first single ‘Atomic Clock’ offers a ‘no fucks given’ approach, a welcome return to the uncompromising, high energy rock n’ roll the band are known for. But the interesting thing about this album is that The Yalla Yallas throw about some unexpected curve balls through the 9 songs on offer, and it starts right from the word go.

Opener ‘Dream Out Loud (Parts I,II and III)’ is a 5-minute plus, slow burning epic affair full of atmospherics and devious intentions. It builds on a sole, picked acoustic guitar and Rob’s lonesome vocal. A sound that immediately draws the listener in, demanding their full attention. The ebb and flow create cinematic vibes, whether it be the Slash-like guitar noodling from Will Grinder or the chilled outro, full of spacey, sound effects. It sets the scene for a journey of sorts.

Elsewhere, the Bad Seeds influenced ‘Down At The Zoo’ is a 12-bar blues anthem for outcasts and socials rejects. An instantly catchy hook, regimental beats and a laid back but confident swagger make it an early highlight. Some say it’s grim up North, but the band somehow manage to channel Ennio Morricone vibes creating their own West Yorkshire spaghetti western with ‘Drive Me Out Of Town’.

The likes of ‘Reset’ and ‘Hey Brian!’ are more in tune with what we have come to expect from The Yalla Yallas. Full of driving beats, rock guitars and a spoken word extract courtesy of The Rebel Poet (David Holmes), ‘Reset’ is the sound of a band on a charge, and ‘Hey Brian!’ is a low-slung rock n’ roll affair with Rob doing his best Bobbie Gillespie over a shoutathon of a chorus.

Taking things right down with a tinkling of the ivories, acoustic guitars and brushes on skins, is the delicate sounds of ‘Barcelona (Absolution)’. Cinematic in its approach and delivery, it’s a song that is as instant as it is fresh sounding. With a well thought out structure, a less is more approach and a cool outro hook with a spoken word diatribe Patti Smith would be proud of, it’s an album highlight for me.

With any Yalla Yallas album there’s gotta be a radio friendly potential single, and ‘(Baby Baby) I Love You’ is ‘AWATEOTW’s hidden gem. An upbeat song full of joy and positivity with an earworm of a chorus. Imagine the sound of early U2 with Steve Jones cranking out the guitars and you might get close.

The raucous punk n’ roll of ‘Elvis (You Gotta Shake)’ finishes things up nicely with cool bass runs, neat licks and added “uh-huh’s” for good measure.

‘A World At The End Of The World’ is a strong return from a Northern band that are well known for their high-energy, sweat-drenched live shows. Rob and his band of brothers have created an album that is raw and ramshackle and delivered from the heart. It sees the band challenge themselves as songwriters to step outside of their comfort zone and create a diverse sounding set of songs with themes of escapism and searching for new horizons. It’s good to have them back and look forward to catching these songs live in the near future.

Buy Here

Authpr: Ben Hughes

Poison Boys/Jonesy – ‘Split’ (Ghost Highway Records)

Poison Boys/Jonesy – ‘Split’ (Ghost Highway Records)

Six of one and almost half a dozen of the other. Man I love a good split LP, Ghost Highway is good at delivering split records be it 7″ or 12″ they tend to get it right when they pick bands to split. First up one of our favourites at RPMHQ has to be Poison Boys not content with a new record of all their early singles in one convenient record they’re hitting Spain for a quick tour and it makes sense to hook up with one of the best labels dishing out Rock n Roll on the continent in Ghost Highway who’ve pulled in six tunes from Poison Boys being five originals and one from filthy rock n rollas Jonesy from outta Canada.

Of the original tunes they’ve included the most excellent ‘Knocked Down Again’ a tune RPM were pleased to have premiered for the band late last year alongside the opener ‘The Searcher’ with its bruising bovver boy punch rocker. The band are delivering that sleazy Johnny Thunders meets Toilet Boys Rock with plenty of attitude as good if not better than anyone else out there at the moment. The harmonica honkin down n dirty ‘Sleaze City’ is pure 100% Punk n Roll it’s like the dirtiest of early Aerosmith being kicked around the Lower East Side by some nasty punks and the wandering gob iron mixed with that barroom piano is the best night out in one three minute rock n roll song I’ve had the privilege of for a while.

By the time you reach their take on Jonesys ‘Messin Around’ you should get the picture for what these boys are about. truly fantastic, reckless rock n roll and taking an already top tune and owning it isn’t something anyone can do so this makes it top-notch and a winner every time it bursts out of the speakers.

Flip this bad boy over and enter Jonesy and their good time filthy Rock n Roll. ‘8 Track Mind’ begins with a lounge laid-back set of smooth keys and handclaps and then the party begins and builds up slowly and smoothly to the wonderful guitar solo. Not what I was expecting at all but hey it’s a touch of class. Then the shots get downed and someone let the gatecrashers in and the sleazy ‘Down’ turns the Amps up but not to a wrecking ball more a measured scarface coolness as Jonesy ease themselves into this split.

They then offer up their take on the Poison Boys ‘Can’t Get You Out’ and now were cooking. A class tune gets the Jonesy treatment like a proper yob job on those gang vocals and hey presto it’s like a long-lost Hanoi Rocks tune. Marvellous.

‘Only Shams’ is a beast of a lick before heading off like one of those Toilet Boys flaming guitars. Two very different bands doing their thing to a wonderful level and both offering the very best, say two sides of the same coin. It would be a split decision if it were a cage fight but I’d expect them both to fight dirty. If you’ve never heard either band now is the time to get involved and jump on board you won’t be disappointed in the slightest if you are I’d check for a pulse because you might just be dead. Buy It! Banger!

Buy Here

Bandcamp

FIZZ/Maya Delilah – Tramshed, Cardiff – 23rd February 2024

FIZZ/Maya Delilah – Tramshed, Cardiff – 23<sup>rd</sup> February 2024

Rewind to Christmas 2023 and RPM’s Albums Of The Year podcasts. During the second broadcast when the gang were running through Ben Hughes’ album list, he advised us all of a record called ‘The Secret To Life’ by a still relatively new band called FIZZ, which in his wise words, told us all “you’ll love this Johnny, its very Jellyfish like powerpop”. I of course immediately needed to know more as Ben certainly knows his stuff, so with Google at hand I went on a musical adventure to discover what the hell he was raving on about and after a couple of false starts (I rather foolishly watched the videos before listening to the album) I finally started to understand, and love ‘The Secret To Life’. It’s an album that truly transcends genres (hence why watching the videos first wasn’t exactly the best way to get to know them) and oozes positivity, and it’s safe to say if I had known back then what I know now, it would have plain sailed into the number 1 spot in my own albums of the year 2023. The rather obvious next step on my journey of musical discovery being to experience what the four members of the band (Greta Isaac, Orla Gartland, Martin Luke Brown and dodie) would do with such an extraordinary record in the live setting.

I’m apparently not alone in my quest either, as tonight the downstairs in the Tramshed is packed out, filled mainly with a much younger demographic than yours truly, a large contingent also dressed up in some way to resemble tonight’s headliners, and you know what, for the first time in years I feel like I’m experiencing something new and exciting scene wise. The PA might be blasting out Andrew Gold, ELO and Boney M (making it feel a bit like I’m back at one of my old school discos) but FIZZ and their community of fans are very much about how you can bin all the negativity in life here in 2024 and simply just enjoy yourself, and that right there is exactly what going to a live show should be all about.

There’s a stark contrast to some of the other audiences I’ve been in most recently, as not only have I’ve never seen the bar area quieter in the Tramshed, but also during the support set by singer/songwriter Maya Delilah there is a hushed reverence and respect for the artiste from the audience that is a model example of how one should behave during a solo show. And why shouldn’t there be, you’ve paid your hard earned to get in, so sit back (or stand back, in tonight’s case) and immerse yourself in a world outside of your own, you’ll never know what you might discover. As it happens Maya Delilah delivers a fine 30-minute set that in equal measure has me thinking of Pink Floyd (guitar tone) Jeff Buckley (in the dissonance of the songwriting) and early Amy Winehouse (in the vocal delivery), the later almost coincidently the last time I witnessed someone being told to “shut the fuck up” during a live show for talking during her set. There’s no need for any such warnings tonight though as Maya seems genuinely blown away by the respect and reaction she is afforded and I for one shall be looking to join her 300,000 monthly listeners online to find out more.

Looking at the stage set up complete with larger than life lollipops and candy canes and a backdrop not to dissimilar to the ‘Bellybutton’ album sleeve, part of me wants FIZZ to appear on stage in their own mode of transport just like the Banana Splits did when they first wowed me into loving pop music, and to some degree they do just this, albeit via the power of imagination as we are treated to an intro tape that has us all onboard a space ship set for Fizzvile just as its about to crash land in Cardiff, as the countdown commences I find myself grinning from ear to ear and that’s before the band (complete with additional rhythm section) have even played a single note. Bursting onto the stage like all conquering heroes the screams that go up remind me of when I saw King back in 1985 and you’ll have to forgive me if I get something in my eye as ‘High In Brighton’ literally takes the roof off the place.

For the next 60 plus minutes we are treated to pretty much all the band’s stellar debut album, a carefully selected track from each of the four members solo careers (which fit in seamlessly)   along with a FIZZ’ed up cover of Lily Allen’s ‘Smile’ and the time I spend in the band’s company simply flies by, largely in part due to the fact that the band themselves look like they are loving every second of their time up on stage, and its infectious, you know.

Highlights are plentiful, but for me it is main set closer ‘The Grand Finale’ in all of it’s Queen-like pomposity that illustrates just how talented this group really are, and then of course there’s the encore of the album’s title track complete with a bubble gun, a cat glove puppet and Thomas The Tank Engine outro tape to send us all of into the night not so much wondering what we’d just experienced as what an experience it was. If FIZZ had existed in the ‘70s, trust me, they would have had their own TV show, they are that kind of band, one much larger than life itself and the fact that they have tapped into the secret of this is what makes it all so bloody perfect. Tonight was the most I’ve enjoyed myself at a gig in years, and all I had to do was be in the moment. Joyous stuff!

Author: Johnny Hayward

Various Artists – ‘All Systems Go – The Neat Singles Volume 1’ (HNE Recordings/Cherry Red Records)

Various Artists – ‘All Systems Go – The Neat Singles Volume 1’ (HNE Recordings/Cherry Red Records)

One of the most fascinating books you are ever likely to pick up regarding the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (or NWOBHM) is John Tucker’s fact packed “Neat & Tidy – The Story of Neat Records”.  Granted it might just focus on the evolution of one of the scene’s many influential players during the dawn of the 1980s, but what a player Neat Records were. The Northeast of England based label provides us denim and leather clad rockers both here in the UK and worldwide early exposure to such seminal names as Tygers of Pan Tang, Venom, Raven, Tobruk, and err Crucifixion, all supported by their groundbreaking (for the time) mail order business.

It’s perhaps no surprise then that HNE Recordings have asked Tucker to not only annotate but also compile this outstanding 4CD salute to the label, ‘All Systems Go – The Neat Singles Volume 1’.

Kicking off with Tygers Of Pan Tang’s 1979 debut ‘Don’t Touch Me There’, and taking us through to Venom’s mighty ‘Warhead’, released in 1984, this set takes in the 37 singles label boss (and studio owner) David Wood’s unleashed on the world during that timeframe (he also released 20+ albums in the same period). Which is an incredible amount of new music from an independent record label, and one that earned Neat Records the tagline of ‘Allegedly Britain’s No.1 Independent Heavy Metal Label’.

My first experience of the label came via a then mate of mine who had picked up a copy of Venom’s classic debut ‘Welcome To Hell’ upon its release back in 1981, which promptly confused the fuck out of us teenage rockers all crammed into his bedroom trying to get our heads around, and not really getting to grips with, just how much of a landmark recording that album actually was, and still is to this very day.

The likes of Tygers Of Pan Tang, White Spirit, and Fist – the first three NWOBHM bands to release singles via Neat (and all captured back to back here as the introduction to the set’s first CD) – had already been snapped up by MCA by this time, so for us, we were immediately playing catch up via records by like likes of Raven, Blitzkrieg, and of course from the very depths of hell, the mighty Venom.  

It’s the lesser-known bands such as (the surprisingly very good, and Celtic Frost approved) Aragorn, Bitches Sin, and Raw Deal (again, all captured on the set’s first CD) that have me taking that same voyage of discovery all over again, albeit four decades on. Plus, as this set progresses it also throws up such other lesser known names (well they were to me anyway) as Steel (who somehow manage to blend Maiden riffs with KISS-like melodies and are fronted by a Jon Deverill wannabe), Valhalla, and the aforementioned Crucifixion, so there’s plenty to get stuck into within this set even if you consider yourself to be something of a die-hard (see what I did there?) fan of Neat Records.

If you have been around the NWOBHM block more than once or twice you may notice that this set is actually very similar to Sanctuary Records’ long since deleted ‘The Neat Singles Collection’ volumes one and two (both of which command an eye watering price on online auction sites right now), however, what this set does that those didn’t, is run the singles’ A and B Sides concurrently, so you’re not having to flip CDs or create playlists simply to play all of Venom’s ‘Warhead’ for example (sadly though the 12” extended version of ‘Warhead’ is once again missing here), plus with ‘All Systems Go – The Neat Singles Volume 1’ you also have a  glorious 20-page booklet with John Tucker’s excellent sleeve notes expanded to forensic levels to completely fill in any knowledge gaps you might have regarding the releases.

If you were too young to experience the NWOBHM first time around, this 82-track collection (which hits the shops on 16th February 2024) is as fine a place as any to visit to inspire you to construct your first denim cut-off, or perhaps step out wearing a bullet belt or studded gauntlet, whilst for those of us with slightly more faded denim cut-offs (that no longer fit us) this is a most welcome trip down memory lane, one that stinks of fags, patchouli oil, Newcastle Brown and is the very birthplace of Black Metal.  

Buy Here

Author: Johnny ‘Double Denim’ Hayward

Motorhead – ‘The Lost Tapes: The Collection (Vol. 1 – 5)’ (BMG)

Motorhead – ‘The Lost Tapes: The Collection (Vol. 1 – 5)’ (BMG)

What’s that you say? More posthumous live material from Motorhead? Do we really need that? Of course, you do! It’s fuckin’ Motorhead!! And there WERE rock and roll!

This collection consists of decades of shows from Motorhead’s long and illustrious career. The Lost Tapes have been coming at us in dribs and drabs over the last few years and this lovely box set has added the latest set from the Download Festival in 2008 to complete the collection… There may be more, who knows? I’m sure there’s plenty more live material floating around.

The first blistering set is from Madrid in 1995, it’s a varied set with a few gems such as Dog Faced Boy and Over Your Shoulder from the Sacrifice album that they were touring at the time. We even get a cover the Hawkwind classic Silver Machine that sounds great given the Motorhead treatment. Phil Campbell & his Bastard Sons still play Silver Machine to this day. There are 24 tracks here, granted, 2 of those are drum and bass solos but that’s fantastic value for money.

From Madrid we head to Norwich for the next batch of Motorhead madness. This set dates to 1998 and we get another quality set from Lemmy and the lads. All the standards are here including Iron Fist, Overkill, Ace of Spades, Killed by Death, as well as few numbers including Civil War and the title track from the Overnight Sensation album.

Next up, we head into the millennium with a show at the KB Hallen in Malmo, Sweden dated November 2000. Opening with We Are Motorhead, which was a mainstay in their set from this time onwards until Lemmy sadly passed away in 2015, the band delivered another noise-ridden cacophony littered with classics as well as their brilliant cover of the Sex Pistols God Save the Queen.

We go all the way to 1984 for the next disc of greasy goodness with a show from Heilbronn, Germany. Great to hear Nothing Up My Sleeve and Steal Your Face getting an airing here. The amount of material that Motorhead amassed over the years is incredible. We also get a turbocharged version of Ace of Spades; this is probably the fastest version of that song I’ve ever heard! Full on thrash pace!

Lastly, we get the set from Download in 2008. Opener Doctor Rock kicks the proceedings off with style, we have another full-on set of classics including In the Name of Tragedy, Metropolis, Going To Brazil, and a fantastic version of Overkill with ex-guitarist Wurzel putting in a guest appearance.

This box set gives you plenty of bang for your buck with 8 CDs chock a block full of Motorhead mayhem. It really is a must for any true Motorheadbangers collection. That’s the way I like it, baby!

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Author: Kenny Kendrick

J Mascis – ‘What Do We Do Now’ (Sub Pop Records)

J Mascis – ‘What Do We Do Now’ (Sub Pop Records)

Better known for his band Dinosaur Jr and his style of guitar-slinging mixed with his part croaky part winey vocal style he is often seen as the ultimate slacker with his long gray hair and quiet soft demeanor Mascis also has a solo career mainly steeped in acoustic folk rock style mixed with his searing solos often the two are inseparable and I dunno why one is his name whilst the other is Dinosaur Jr maybe it’s one of those things like chicken or the egg dilemmas.

On ‘What Do We Do Now’ you are greeted on entry by the upbeat ‘Can’t Believe We’re Here’ with its big acoustic chords and vibrant drum punches on what can only be described as classic Mascis. I love the body-swaying melodies and the middle eight where we drift off toward one of his trademark fuzzed-up solos that just soars. The title track offers more of the acoustic guitar being the lead instrument over the stripped-back band approach. J is joined on by keyboards by Ken Mauri of The B52s, and steel guitar by Canadian psych/folk/experimental musician Matthew ‘Doc’ Dunn and after only a few plays this is his brightest and most solid set of solo songs I’ve heard on first impressions. Five solo records in and this is instantly gratifying. On finishing the first couple of run-throughs from one to ten I feel refreshed and uplifted with the overall feel of this record. ‘Right Behind You’ is a joy. The format is solid and pretty much runs throughout the album with ‘I Can’t Find You’ being led by a bright piano and guitar in the intro with a twisting melody through the verse that takes the song somewhere different from what’s come before it and that’s the slight variety but the quality is front and center in all the songs on the record.

Halfway in and the strongest track in my humble opinion is ‘It’s True’ It’s like he is channeling his inner Neil Young and the groovy ‘Set Me Down’ follows like something the alt-country bands will swoon over. It’s Wilco meets Jesse Malin but totally J Mascis. I love that the format of Acoustic Guitars, Keys, Bass and basic drums have been the cornerstone throughout the record with the occasional fuzz solo and organ adding texture here and there making for a mellow yet really uplifting hopeful album and fans of MAscis will be delighted with what’s on offer and the fact he’s touring this is exciting I only hope I can get to hear these live that would complete ‘What Do We Do Now’ for me.

We’re only just breaking into February and I’ve heard some amazing records and J Mascis has certainly delivered one of them with this gentle offering compared to the full-force fuzz of his day job this is the perfect yang to the Dinosaur Ying. Beautiful record, Perfect for a wet rainy day just looking out the window as the world drifts by with the stereo turned up and a hot drink in your hand that’s what we do now. Buy it!

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Author: Dom Daley